It’s Time For A New Standard On Judging Rape Accusers

JDF has written for "The New York Times," "Time" Magazine, and "The Guardian" newspaper in Great Britain and is co-founder of Peren Linn Fashion, a company that makes math-themed clothing for women and girls. He obtained his doctorate from the University of Oxford.

University of Virginia president Teresa Sullivan’s premature accusation against fraternities illustrates the standard of justice for men accused of rape. Therefore, there is a need for a new standard in judging rape accusers: Lying Until Proven Otherwise. Making this a publically-stated default position blunts the feminist charge of insensitivity towards alleged victims. University Administrator to Female Student: “I’m sorry, Ms. Led, I can’t help you with your complaint because of the Lupo Higher Education Act of 2016. My hands are tied.”

(Ironically, the University of Ohio accuser did go to the police that same night, but of all the recent rape accusers in the news, there is the strongest evidence against her that she had consensual relations, since about two dozen people saw it and captured it on video.)

A good example is the Tucker Reed case, which Occidental College professor of politics, Caroline Heldman, and her student, S.C.U.M. myrmidon Baillee Brown, discuss in a dangerous and misleading article, “Campus Rape: Why Not Law Enforcement?”

It’s rather gross to go through the details, but here is Miss Reed’s own account:

He and I ended up making out on my couch. When he started taking off my clothes, I moved the make-out session to my bedroom in case my roommates came home.

Eventually naked, in my bed, my date told me he wanted to have sex. I told him repeatedly that I did not want to.

All of us agree that at this point she has not given consent. “That I wanted it to be special.” She has not given consent. “That I wasn’t ready.” She has not given consent. “That having sex so soon would ruin our relationship.” She has not given consent. “But it happened anyway.” She gave consent!

Not sure about that? Reed continues: “I told him he was hurting me and I tried to pull away.” First of all, it’s he-said-she-said—sorry if our code of justice is too exacting for Heldman and Brown, but, regardless, the act’s hurting doesn’t mean “stop” and (trying) to pull away doesn’t mean “stop,” as anyone who has engaged in the act would know: it can mean “stop,” but it can also not mean “stop.” If Reed had said, “Stop,” that’s a different story, but she didn’t. (I’m using the exact same logic applied to the woman on the street who recorded men chatting her up in New York, after which many feminists collectively ordered men to only attempt to say, “Hello,” to a woman if she tells them they can: women are adults and can and will make their desires known.)

Reed continues, “He pulled me closer. In the end, after he was done, I interpreted it as a ‘misunderstanding’—surely he’d just been too drunk to listen.” Ignoring the fact that under feminist interpretations of California law she’d be the rapist (she gives no indication that she had been drinking, but states clearly that she knew he had been drinking)—Reed is stating that she did not consider it rape, but later retroactively withdrew consent.

I had continued to see my rapist. He’d told me he was in love with me and wanted to marry me.

And when did she withdraw consent? “It took me a year to talk openly about my experience.” A year? OK, fine. So that’s when she went to the police? “I told my best friend.” No, she went to the police two years later.

She knows English. “No” means “no.” She’s heard that expression 1,000 times and could have said it a thousand-and-first time herself.

JDF has written for "The New York Times," "Time" Magazine, and "The Guardian" newspaper in Great Britain and is co-founder of Peren Linn Fashion, a company that makes math-themed clothing for women and girls. He obtained his doctorate from the University of Oxford.